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| Photo: AP Photo/Ajit Solanki |
The death toll reached 141 in the bridge accident on the Machu River in Morbi in the Indian state of Gujarat on Sunday. Officials say that the death toll may rise as some people are still missing in the river.
The 140-year-old suspension bridge broke and fell into the river on Sunday evening. According to Indian media, there were more than 400 people on the bridge when it collapsed. The missing persons are being searched for. 45 of the dead are children under the age of 18. According to officials, 170 people were rescued alive after the accident.
The bridge, which was closed for maintenance since last March, was opened to the public on the occasion of Gujarati New Year and Diwali. However, the fact that the municipality opened the bridge to the public without giving a certificate that the bridge was repaired has come out. The local police arrested 9 people involved in the bridge repair and prosecuted them for murder. When the bridge broke, hundreds of people fell into the river. According to the police, further investigation is being conducted into the incident.
The bridge was commissioned by the King of Morbi, Sir Baghji Thakor, and was inaugurated by the then-British Governor Richard Temple in 1879. All the materials required to construct the bridge were procured from Britain. At that time, the construction cost of the bridge was 350,000. As it is old and artistic, a large number of tourists used to reach the city of Morbi in Gujarat just to see the bridge.
The bridge built using modern European technology used to give a glimpse of the royal era in Morbi. At the time of its construction, the bridge was called an artistic and technical marvel.
It is said that there is a clear influence of the colonial-era architecture of Sir Baghji Thakor in the construction of the bridge. The bridge connecting Darbargarh and the royal residence of Nazarbagh Palace was 233 meters long and 1.25 meters wide.
After the construction, the bridge was repaired at different times. A bridge damaged by the devastating earthquake in Gujarat in 2001 was reconstructed. Last time before Diwali, the bridge was repaired at a cost of Rs 2 crore. Morbi Municipality entrusted the bridge under its control to 'Orewa Group' for 15 years to maintain, manage and operate it.
The municipality said that the bridge was opened for the general public without giving any information and that Oreva Group is to blame for the incident. To go to the bridge, tickets were fixed at 12 rupees for children and 17 rupees for adults. Orewa Group manufactures watches, electric motorcycles, etc.
The capacity of the bridge was set to allow only one hundred people to climb at a time. However, at the time of the accident on Sunday, there was four/five times the capacity of people on the bridge. When the bridge fell at 6:30 in the evening, there were 400 to 500 people there. According to the local administration, the preliminary investigation showed that the accident was due to this. After the incident, the army, police, and locals were involved in rescue operations throughout the night.
The central government of India has announced to give Rs 2 lakh to the dependent families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 to the injured. The opposition party Congress has accused the ruling BJP of hastily opening the bridge for the public in view of the upcoming elections in Gujarat. He has demanded a fair investigation of the incident and bringing the culprits to justice.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Gujarat on Monday and expressed his condolences to the family of the deceased. In addition to that, the Indian media reported that they have received information about the treatment and rescue operations of the injured in the accident. Likewise, Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has also expressed his grief over the incident. Tweeting on Monday, Deuba expressed his deep condolences to the deceased family.